The Bright Golden Haze artist on "painting" with light and shadow

Eva Schlegel. Untitled (231), 2015.

Seeing isn't always believing. Take it from Bright Golden Haze artist Eva Schlegel. The disorienting work of this Viennese photographer challenges viewers' perceptions through a delicate play of light and architecture, such as her Untitled (231) on view in Oklahoma Contemporary's delayed inaugural exhibition.

"It's not what it seems. It's not a door where the light comes through," Schlegel said of the work. "If you watch the angles and search for it, they're not right angles. It's not what it should be. But still you have the feeling that it's drawn or it's painted with light and shadow."

In addition to photography, Schlegel's work includes objects and installation works, which are implemented experimentally and spatially by using different media — such as photography on lead, mirror or glass. Since 1995, she has completed numerous public art projects in her home in Austria and around the world. The artist's work has been collected by more than 40 major institutions, including the Albertina Collection in Vienna, the Museum of Contemporary Art in Chicago, the New York Public Library and more.

For today's installment of our Illuminations video series, Schlegel discusses the development of her practice, her collaborations with architects to produce site-specific works and her use of light to create a sense of space.

Eva Schlegel. Untitled (231), 2015. Photography, print on Hahnemühle paper. 79.5 × 53.5 inches. Courtesy of the artist and Gallery Wendi Norris, San Francisco.  

Photo of Eva Schlegel by Dennis Spielman.

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